Star-gazer's hand-book; a brief guide for amateur students of astronomy

' '3RARY

GIFT OF
BOHEMIAN CLUB

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STAR-GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

A Brief Guide for

Amateur Students of Astronomy

BY

HENRY W. ELSON, Ph. D.

Author of " Side Lights on American History," Etc.

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STURGIS & WALTON

COMPANY

1910

All rights reserved

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ASTRONOMY DEFT,"

Copyright, 1902
BY HENRY W. ELSON

PREFACE

IN presenting the subject of Astronomy at
Teachers' Institutes and similar gatherings, I have
frequently been requested to recommend a hand-
book for ready reference by which one pursuing
the subject without a teacher might not only learn
the general facts of Astronomy, but also trace out
the constellations and learn the mythological
stories in connection with them. I know of
several excellent books on the subject, but none
containing this last-named feature — and I decided
to write one. I stated this fact to a Teachers'
Institute (in Montgomery Co., Pa.), and stated
also that, owing to other work in hand, I could
not do this within a year, whereupon the teachers
to the number of three hundred and forty-two
sent in their names as advance subscribers, if I
would prepare the book immediately. This re-
quest could not be ignored, and hence this booklet
is issued a year sooner than intended by the
writer.

In the first part I have given in a form as con-
densed as possible, the main astronomical facts
according to the latest discoveries, but have made
no pretense of entering into higher mathematical
Astronomy. Those wishing to become specialists
in the subject cannot confine themselves to this
little book.

In the second part, which treats of the Constel-
lations, I have omitted all that are visible only in
the southern hemisphere, and a few unimportant
ones in the north, especially those of modern in-

701028 8

4 PREFACE

vention. In giving the names of the stars I have
used only the names given by the ancients, as these
are far more poetic and attractive than the names
of the Greek Alphabet, as used generally by
astronomers. This modern method of naming
the stars is necessary to astronomers, but not to
those who desire to remember the names of only
a few of the brightest stars in each constellation.

H. W. E.

PHILADELPHIA, PA.,

January, 1902.

INTRODUCTION

Astronomy. — The study of Astronomy is one
of the most delightful and soul-inspiring of all
studies. It lifts the soul above earthly things
and leads one to contemplate the immensity of
the Universe. " We love to look at a star, " said
Victor Hugo, "for two reasons — because it is
bright and because it is impenetrable. " " Two
things fill me with unceasing awe, " said the great
German philosopher, Kant, " the starry heavens
above and the moral law within."

The history and the destiny of the heavenly
bodies we cannot know in this life, but we may
know something of their immense distances from
us and from one another, and of the laws that
govern them in their sublime, silent revolutions
through eternal space. As we gaze into the deep,
measureless heavens and note the suns and worlds
in their unceasing motions through the boundless
depths of space, we feel as at no other time the
meaning of the Psalmist's words, "Great and
marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty. "

We may divide the Universe into three parts:

First, the EARTH — the great globe on which we
live, turning on its axis once in twenty-four hours,
speeding around the sun at the rate of nineteen
miles per second, and so poised in its course as not
to fall into the sun, nor to fly away into space.
Second, the SOLAR SYSTEM — the Sun, a great ball
of fire in the sky, and his family of planets, eight
large dark bodies, including the earth ; and many
smaller ones, all revolving around the sun in the
same direction (from west to east) within a belt
of the sky called the Zodiac, 16° in width. Third,
the SIDEREAL HEAVENS — the vast, unmeasured
space beyond our system in which are all the
fixed stars.

5

STAR GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

CHAPTER I

THE SOLAR SYSTEM

The Sun. — The most glorious object ever be-
held by human eyes is the sun. The sun is a
globe of fire, in a molten state, and it radiates
light and heat in all directions. A portion of this
light and heat reaches us, and without it there
could l)e no life upon the earth. The heat of the
sun is so great that any substance known to us,
if thrown into that cauldron, would instantly be
reduced to vapor. The diameter of the sun is
866,400 miles, and if he were a hollow globe and the
earth were placed at his center, the moon could still
hold her course in her orbit, and there would yet
be nearly 200,000 miles beyond the moon's orbit
to the surface of the sun's shell. The volume of
the sun is 1,300,000 times that of the earth. The
density of the sun, however, is but one- fourth
that of the earth, and his actual mass but 330,000
times the mass of the earth, and 750 times the
mass or weight of all the planets combined.

The visible surface of the sun, called the pho-
tosphere, is composed of white-hot gaseous and
semi-liquid matter, which, in its furious boiling,
throws out jets reaching to the height of 60,000
miles. The heat is supposed to be generated by
a contraction of the sun upon itself, at the rate of
about six feet per century. If this be true, the
time must come, many million years hence, when
the process can go on no longer and the sun will

7

8

become a dark and cold body. The sun revolves
on his axis in twenty-five and one-fourth days.
He holds the planets in their orbits by the great
Newtonion law of gravitation by which every body
in the universe attracts every other body in pro-
portion directly to the mass of each and inversely
to the square of the distance between them.

So great is the sun's attraction that a man of ordi-
nary size would weigh, on its surface, twenty-seven
times as much as on the earth's surface, or about
five thousand pounds, and he would be crushed to
death by his own weight. Great dark spots are
often seen on the sun's surface, and if greater than
27,000 miles in diameter, they can be seen with
the naked eye. In 1858 there was one 150,000
miles in diameter. The sun is surrounded by an
atmosphere without which his rays would be twice
as hot as they are and would be bluish in color.

One of the most momentous of modern astro-
nomical discoveries is that the sun, with all his
family of planets, is moving through space at the
rate of about twelve miles per second, toward the
constellation Lyra; but how great may be this
revolution or how many thousands of years may
be required to make it we have no knowledge.

The Earth. — The age and origin of the earth
are utterly unknown to us. While a firm believer
in the Bible, I can readily accept the theory that
the days of creation mentioned in Genesis were
days, not of twenty-four hours each, but of long
periods of time, aggregating perhaps millions of
years. According to the Nebular Hypothesis the
earth, as well as the other planets, was originally
a part of the sun, and in the remote past was
sloughed off into space, and in the course of ages

THE SOLAR SYSTEM 9

its heat was radiated into space until its surface be-
came cold and solid, and it became the home of
plants and animals and men. The earth revolves
around the sun in a fixed path called its orbit.

The orbit of the earth is an ellipse, and the
earth is some three million miles nearer the sun
in January than in July. Here then arise two
questions that must be answered with some care :
Why does not the earth fall into the sun ? and why
does it not fly away into space ? The earth is acted
on by two powerful forces, the attraction of the sun,
which tends to draw it toward that body ; and the
tendency to fly away, as a drop of water on the
rim of a revolving wheel tends to fly away from
the wheel. To answer the first question, let us
begin with July, when the earth is at aphelion,
farthest from the sun. For five months after this
time the earth is approaching the sun and the
sun's attraction increases its speed until, in De-
cember, it is flying considerably faster than in
July. The tendency, therefore, of the earth to
fall into the sun is counteracted by the increased
speed of the former, which increases its tendency
to fly away from the sun, as the drop of water
tends to leave the wheel when the motion of the
latter is increased.

The earth, therefore, swings around nearer the
sun in January, and its increased speed causes it
to again recede from the sun. This receding con-
tinues for five months. Why then does not the
earth continue its flight until the sun's attraction
is overcome ? Because the motion of the earth is
now retarded during these five months by the con-
tinued attraction of the sun, which tends to draw
the earth back again. At length the power of the
sun gains the mastery and the earth swings around

10 STAR GAZ£R'S HAND-BOOK

in July and again approaches the sun. Thus the
earth is perfectly poised between these two mighty
forces, and so it flies in its orbit on and on for-
ever. If, however, the earth's speed reached
twenty-six miles or more per second, instead of
nineteen, the sun's power could not hold it and it
would fly away into the region of darkness, and
so distant are the stars that it would not reach the
nearest of them for many thousands of years.

The Moon. — The larger planets all have moons
or satellites. One of them has eight moons. The
earth has one. Our moon is a dark, cold body.
Half of the moon, when not eclipsed, is always
lighted by the sun. If the entire lighted surface
is turned toward us, we see the full moon ; if half
of it, we see a half moon ; if one-fourth of it, we
see the first quarter or the last quarter. These
are known as the moon's phases.*

The moon's mean distance from the earth is
240,000 miles. It is 2160 miles in diameter, the
surface being about one-fourteenth the surface of
the earth, or four and a half times that of the
United States. Weight on the moon is about one-
sixth that on the earth's surface, and a man of or-
dinary size would weigh some twenty-five pounds
on the moon, and with ordinary strength he could
jump sixty or seventy feet, or throw a ball half a
mile.

* When the moon is full she is always opposite the
sun in the heavens. If you see a full moon on the
meridian, i. e., directly south of the zenith, it is mid-
night. A full moon in the morning must be in the west ;
in the evening, it must be in the east. A half moon on
the meridian indicates evening, if the light side is turned
toward the west ; if toward the east, it is morning before
sunrise.

THE SOLAR SYSTEM 11

The moon turns on her axis once with each
revolution around the earth — twenty-nine and a
half days. The same side of the moon is there-
fore always turned toward us and no human
being ever saw the other side ; but owing to her
librations we can see about four-sevenths of the
surface. We see the reflected sunlight from the
otherwise dark surface of the moon ; and if one
could view the earth from the moon he would see
a large bright globe, four times as great in di-
ameter as our moon, which would show the same
phases, full earth, half earth, first quarter, last
quarter, etc. When the new moon appears in the
west, the entire body can be seen in dim outline.
This is caused by a full earth.

The moon is without an atmosphere, and as
atmosphere is essential to life and sound, there is
no life and no sound on our satellite. The imagi-
nation cannot picture a more lonely and dreary
waste than is the surface of the moon. The sur-
face is marvelously rugged and mountainous.
There are about three thousand extinct volcanoes
visible through the telescope, and the highest
mountain peaks probably exceed in height any
upon the earth. There is no water on the moon,
but there may be ice in the deep places and where
the sun does not shine the temperature is doubt-
less 300 degrees below zero, Fahrenheit.

Eclipses. — When the moon comes directly be-
tween the sun and the earth, the sun is eclipsed.
It happens that the diameter of the sun is four
hundred times that of the moon, and he is four
hundred times farther from us than the moon,
and hence they seem to be about the same size —
half a degree in diameter. From this fact the

12 STAB GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

moon crossing the sun?s disc is just large enough
to cover it and produce a total eclipse. If, how-
ever, the moon is in apogee, at her farthest point
from the earth (for her orbit is an ellipse and her
distance from the earth varies a few thousand
miles), she is not large enough to cover the entire
surface of the sun, and a little rim of light is seen
all around her. This is called an annular eclipse,
from the Latin annulus, a ring. A total eclipse
can occur only when the moon is in perigee, i. e.,
nearest the earth. A partial eclipse occurs when
the moon does not squarely cross the face of the
sun, but covers only part of it. The deep shadow
of a total eclipse is called the umbra ; the partial
shadow, the pen-umbra, from the Latin words
pene, almost, and umbra a shadow. A total
eclipse of the sun is one of the grandest scenes in
nature, as it reveals the sun's corona, a beautiful
crown of light which cannot be seen at any other
time. But its occurrence is rare at any one place
because the moon's shadow is narrow — not over
a hundred miles in width.

The next total solar eclipse in the United States
will be on June 8, 1918, and it will sweep from
Oregon to Florida. The longest duration of a
total eclipse of the sun is a little over seven min-
utes, but there has been none of that length for
a thousand years. The next will occur in India
in 1955.

There must be at least two solar eclipses (not
necessarily total) every year, and there may be
five — never more than five — and this only when
the first comes in January. A solar eclipse occurs
when the moon crosses the ecliptic, i. e. , the sun's
apparent path in the heavens. If the moon's
orbit were in the same plane as the earth's orbit,

THE SOLAR SYSTEM 13

there would be a solar eclipse every month, but
the plane of the earth' s orbit and the plane of the
moon's orbit are inclined five and one-seventh
degrees. The moon crosses the ecliptic every six
months (or twenty days less owing to the proces-
sion of the equinoxes) and at each crossing there
must be a solar eclipse. But since the sun re-
quires thirty-seven days to pass the moon's node,
and the moon's revolution around the earth is
made in twenty-nine and one-half days, there may
be two partial solar eclipses at one passing of the
node.

An eclipse of the moon occurs only at full
moon, and then only when near her node, or the
crossing of the ecliptic. It is always about fifteen
days before or after an eclipse of the sun.

The shadow of the earth is a cone in form. It
extends into space opposite the sun for 857,000
miles, where it tapers to a point. If the sun and
earth were of equal size, this shadow would be a
cylinder, and would extend indefinitely into space.
It might then eclipse a planet or any body receiv-
ing [its light from the sun, but never the fixed
stars, because they shine by their own light. As
it is, this shadow can eclipse the moon only, as it
is the only heavenly body within 857,000 miles
of the earth.

The diameter of the base of this cone-shadow
is co-equal with the earth's diameter, 8000 miles,
and at the moon's distance, 240,000 miles, it is
yet nearly 6000 miles in diameter. The moon is
but 2160 miles in diameter, and she can there-
fore easily be totally eclipsed by the earth's
shadow. A total lunar eclipse may continue for
several hours, not only because the shadow is so
much broader than the moon, but also because she

14

STAR GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

is sweeping through the sky in the same direction
as the shadow.

The Planets.-— The planets, or "wanderers,"
are the heavenly bodies that revolve forever about
the sun, tethered by his powerful attraction, all
moving with marvelous harmony in fixed ellip-
tical orbits. The eight great planets in the order

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Million M

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6

Number
Moons

MERCURY,
VENUS, . .

36
67

88 days
225 "

88 days
225 "

3,000
7,700

Pale Ash
Bright Straw

0

0

EARTH, . .

93

365 "

24 hours

7,920

1

MARS, . . .

141

687 "

24 "

4,200

Reddish Ochre

2

JUPITER, .

483

12yrs.

10 hrs. 10 min.

87,000

Silver

5

SATURN, .

886

30 "

10 " 12 "

71,000

Dull Yellow

8

URANUS, .

1780

84 "

10 "

31,700

Pale Green

4

NEPTUNE,

2790

165 "

Unknown

34,500

Pale Green

1

NOTE. — Round numbers are usually given in the above
table because more easily remembered. Neptune, since
its discovery in 1846, has been considered as marking
the remotest boundary of the solar system ; but on ac-
count of disturbances in the orbits of comets and other
bodies, some leading astronomers have come to believe
that there is yet an undiscovered planet three times as
far from the sun as that planet. It is further believed
that this planet is the largest of them all and requires a
thousand years to make a revolution around the sun.
The nearer a planet is to the sun the greater his attrac-
tion ; but this is counteracted by its swifter motion.

PLATE »!•, »•''*'-.,*

July i, 9.00 t*.> IMS. • »f>

NOTE — These plates, not in the first edition, have been added to
aid the reader in tracing out the constellations. Each plate
represents the entire visible heavens and is vastly better than
star-maps that show only part of the sky. Plate I represents the
sky on July i, o P. M.; plate II on October I; plate III on
January i and plate IV on April i.

Remember that, unlike a land-map, the East is on the left
and the West on the right. First find the P9lar Star in the
center of the Arctic Circle, then find the circum-polar con-
stellations as described on page 29 and following. In plate I
notice that Arcturus is a little to the right, i. e. a little west of
the zenith, while Vega is nearing the zenith from the east. Far
in the south is Antares, and so on.

PLATS,- II.

Octdbe'r'j, g.co P.M.

In plate II, tkree months later, the summer stars have
moved far to the west. Altair and Delphinus have passed the
meridian and the great square of Pegasus (of which the first
letter of the word on the map is near the center) is nearing
the zenith. Always study the sky and the description in con-
nection with the plate.

January i, 9.00 P. 'M. '

Plate III gives us tke most brilliant view of the sky in the
year. Aldebaran and the Pleiades are near the Zenith and
Orion a little to the southeast. Still further southeastward is
Sirius, the brightest of all the stars, and Procion and Castor
and Pollox higher up. Notice the great line of bright stars
between the Pole and Pleiades, sweeping from Capella through
Perseus and Andromeda to Pegasus.

IV.

April i, 9.00 P. M.

Plate IV shows the winter constellations passing to the
west. Regulus in Leo is on the meridian; the Great Dipper
is nearing the Zenith and Arcturus, which we noticed in
Plate I, is now reigning monarch of the east.

Note that in all the plates the Polar Star alone remains in
one place.

THE SOLAR SYSTEM 15

of their distance from the sun are : Mercury,
Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and
Neptune. Besides these there are many small
ones between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
Mercury and Venus are often called inferior
planets, because nearer the sun than the earth,
while those farther from the sun than the earth
are called superior planets. Again, Mercury,
Venus, Earth, and Mars are called terrestrial
planets and the other four the outer planets.
The four outer planets are much larger than the
terrestrial planets. To show size, distance from
the sun, rotation, etc., in condensed form for
ready reference, the foregoing table is given.

Jupiter is known as the giant planet. His vol-
ume is greater than that of all the other planets
together — more than 1200 times the size of the
earth. Saturn comes next and is larger than all
the rest combined, excluding Jupiter. In regard
to size the planets are divided into four pairs.
Jupiter and Saturn constitute the first pair, their
respective diameters being each above 70,000
miles. The second pair are Uranus and Neptune,
with diameters above 30,000 miles. The earth
and Venus, each with a diameter a little less than
8000 miles, constitute the third pair, while the
smallest of the planets are Mars and Mercury.
The planets nearest the earth go through the same
phases as the moon, but these changes cannot be
seen without optical aid.

Visibility. — Two of the planets, Mercury and
Venus, are nearer the sun than we are and can
never be seen opposite the sun in the sky, nor
even on the meridian. Mercury is visible at cer-
tain seasons, hovering near the sun in the evening

16

just after dark or in the morning before sunrise—
never more than '18° from the sun. Venus may
be seen as high as 47° from the sun, morning or
evening.* She is the most brilliant object in the
heavens except the sun and moon. The planets
are all non-luminous and shine by reflected light
from the sun. Mars when on the same side of
the sun with the ea " may come within 36,000,000
miles of the latter and at such times he is a very
bright and beautiful object ; but when opposite
the earth he is about seven times as far away as
when nearest. Jupiter is, next to Venus, the
brightest of the planets, while Saturn, which is
surrounded by a vast circle of rings, probably of a
gaseous nature, shines like ap. ordinary first mag-
nitude star. >Uranus seems like a star of the sixth
magnitude, and is seldom seen by the naked eye,
while Neptune is nevt visible except through the
telescope. Two or throe of the planets are visible
at some hour of almost any clear night. They
are never seen in the zenith or north of it, nor low
in the southern horizon, but always within thu
belt of the zodiac — the path of the sun and moon.
To find them, consult an almanac. Once found,
they are not hard to keep track of.

Are the Planets inhabited ? — This ques-
tion has been widely discussed, but all opinions
on the subject are mere conjecture. With some of
the planets, however, a negative answer seems
conclusive. Mercury and Venus have the same
side always turned toward the sun. On these
planets the sun never rises and never sets. On

*Any good almanac will tell when Venus or Mercury
is morning or evening star.

THE SOLAR SYSTEM 17

the one side of each is perpetual day and per-
petual summer (much hotter than our own),
while the opposite side is enveloped in eternal
darkness. Such creatures as ourselves could
scarcely exist on either of these globes, except it
would be around the belt of twilight, and this is
not at all probable.

The two outer planets of the Solar system,
Uranus and Neptune, from which the sun would
seem only like a brilliant star, receive so little
light and heat from the orb of day that it would
seem impossible that such beings as we are could
exist there. There is no known reason, however,
why some form of animal life should not be found
on these planets. Of Jupiter and Saturn we may
say that it is almost certain that no life exists on
these vast globes. The reason is not far to seek.
Astronomers generally agree that they are not yet
fully cold, are possibly in a semi-molten state;
though their heat is so far gone that they are no
longer self-luminous.

This leaves us Mars alone, the most interesting
of all the planets aside from our own. The
aspects of this planet seem to present all the con-
ditions necessary to sustain life. The light and
heat from the sun, while much less than received
by us, are quite sufficient to sustain life. Air
and water seem to be present, and so every condi-
tion of animal and vegetable life. But we have
no positive knowledge on the subject. The most
powerful telescopes reveal certain markings that
seem like canals and variable polar caps that look
like ice or snow ; but they tell us nothing further.
Mars is probably inhabited ; but we have no means
of proving that it is.

The general belief that there are other worlds in

18 STAR GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

our solar system or in other systems which are
inhabited by intelligent beings cannot be proved,
but the opposite belief is narrow and untenable.
Our earth is but a tiny speck in comparison with
the universe. How can one believe that an all-
wise Creator would people this one little ball with
creatures after His own image and leave all the
rest of creation a lifeless waste ? Would a farmer
who owned a thousand acres of land be content
with raising one ear of corn, or one hill of pota-
toes ? The Creator has told us only a little about
Himself in the Bible. We cannot conceive of
Him as limited in power, x>r of an end to space,
or of a beginning or an end of tune.

Some heavenly bodies are far gone in their life
history and the conditions of animal life are no
longer present; others seem to be in process of
formation. It is most reasonable to believe that
the one may have been the home of life in the

rt and that the other may be so in the future,
other worlds are inhabited, such inhabitants
may be creatures similar to ourselves ; but we do
not know.

CHAPTER II

COMETS AND METEORS

Comets. — From ancient times comets have
been regarded with much superstition ; but mod-
ern astronomers have discovered that comets travel
through space in accordance with fixed laws, and
are as harmless as other heavenly bodies.

A comet is composed of three parts, 1, the
nucleus, the star-like point ; 2, the coma, or hair
surrounding the nucleus, and 3, the tail. The
nucleus and coma are together called the head.
The nucleus of a comet is probably solid matter,
but is very small as compared with the smallest
of the major planets ; the coma is vaporous, while
the tail, often many million miles in length, is
immeasurably thinner and lighter than the air
we breathe. Comets are drawn from the depths
of space by the sun's power ; they sweep around
the sun with great velocity and then flee away
again into unknown regions. In the preceding
chapter it was explained how the earth, while
approaching the sun from July to December, in-
creases in speed, and how this greater velocity
increases the centrifugal power and causes it to
fly away again. The same is true in a far greater
degree in the case of comets. For years they are
approaching the sun and their speed increasing
until, when they rush round that orb, it is some-
times with the frightful velocity of a million miles
an hour. This speed was reached by the great
comet of 1843, which was visible in daylight. It

19

20 STAR GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

swept within 50,000 miles of the sun's disc, al-
most grazing his glowing surface, and then sped
away into space to return no more for five hun-
dred years.

Most comets belong permanently to the solar
system. They travel in very eccentric ellipses and
return at regular periods, three years or more.
Some fly beyond the orbit of Neptune and more
than a century is often required for a revolution.
Other comets visit our system once and sink away
again into the unknown depths of the skies never
to return. If a comet's velocity at ninety million
miles from the sun exceeds twenty-six miles a
second, the sun has no power to hold it and it flies
away to be seen no more. Sometimes, however, a
comet of this class comes so near to Jupiter, or
some other great planet, that its course is dis-
turbed by his attraction, its velocity lessened, and
it becomes a permanent member of the solar sys-
tem. Jupiter is known to have caught eighteen
comets in this net, while Saturn, Uranus, and Nep-
tune each have a few. The reason why comets
do not seriously disturb the planets in their orbits
is that the former are so small that their attractive
power is not greatly felt.

Sometimes a comet in passing very near the
sun is torn to pieces by his enormous attraction.
The fragments then continue separately in the
same path as before. This occurred with the lost
Biela's comet in 1846, and with others since then.
At each return to perihelion the fragments are
further disintegrated until they are divided into
millions of meteoric particles, and these still con-
tinue in the orbit of the original comet.

No other appearance in the skies has excited
such consternation through many ages as the

COMETS AND METEORS 21

approach of comets. But there is little to fear.
The tail of a comet is so thin that it could do us
no harm. In 1861 the earth passed through a
comet's tail with no ill effects. The coma, how-
ever, if it reached our orb would doubtless vitiate
our atmosphere and cause serious damage, but
such a contact is not at all likely to happen. But
if the nucleus of a large comet were to strike the
earth squarely, it would no doubt generate great
hea,t and destroy all life upon our globe. It has
been calculated, however, that the chances are
that a comet will not strike the earth oftener than
once in fifteen million years.

Examples. — The shortest period of all comets
is that of Encke's Comet, which returns to the
sun every three and one-half years. It swings
out beyond the orbit of Mars, but not as far as the
orbit of Jupiter. Halley's Comet has a period of
nearly seventy-six years. Its last visit was in
1835, and it will come again in 1910. In 1811 a
great comet appeared, which, from the shape of
its orbit, is not expected to return for 3000 years.
Biela's Comet, with a period of six and a half
years, was torn to pieces by the sun about fifty
years ago, and has not been seen since, but at the
time it should appear there is always a shower of
meteors which are no doubt fragments of this
comet. Donati's Comet of 1858 will not appear
again for 2000 years. The great comet of 1861,
which swept the earth with its tail, will come
again in 400 years. In 1882 a great comet passed
between the earth and the sun and was visible in
daylight. There are about thirty comets each cen-
tury that are visible to the natural eye, and about
three hundred visible through the telescope.

Meteors. — There are vast numbers of small
bodies flying round the sun — too small to be
seen through the telescope. Many of them are no
larger than ordinary shot. If a ball is thrown into
the air filled with dust it strikes many of the dust
particles. So the earth in its orbit comes into
contact with multitudes of these small bodies,
which, when they strike our atmosphere, are soon
highly heated by friction and reduced to vapor,
the larger ones being readily seen as a streak of
white light across the sky. They are often called
shooting stars. It is believed that millions of these
meteors come into contact with the earth every
day, and that but for the friendly mantle of the
air, all living beings on the earth would be pelted
to death. Sometimes a meteor passes through the
air and reaches the earth, when it is called a
meteorite. A meteorite is composed chiefly of
iron or stone.

Meteoric Showers. — Sometimes there is a
much greater fall of meteors than ordinary. The
greatest meteoric shower on record occurred in 1833.
Whatever may be the origin of ordinary meteors,
it is certain that showers of meteors are the frag-
ments of shattered comets. A shower similar to
that of 1833 occurred in 1799, and another in
1866. These are called Leonids, because they
seem to emanate from the constellation Leo. They
are found in the track of a comet whose period is
a little over thirty-three years. The earth crosses
this path about November 14, of each year and
the shower always occurs on or very near that
date.

On the tenth of every August, between mid-
night and sunrise, a considerable number of

COMETS AND METEORS 23

meteors may be seen. These are called Perseids,
as they seem to radiate from Perseus. They pur-
sue the track of Swift's Comet, whose period is one
hundred and twenty years. These small bodies
are distributed throughout the entire vast course
of that comet, many hundred millions of miles,
and every time the earth crosses this path
(Aug. 10), some of the Perseids are encountered.
When the earth crosses the path of the lost Biela's
Comet (especially every sixth year, the period of
the comet), meteors are seen. These are called
Bielids.

CHAPTER III

THE SIDEREAL HEAVENS

When we go out on a clear, moonless night, and
gaze into the deep celestial vault above us, we are
struck with awe and wonder at the interminable
vastness of the visible universe. And how our
awe is increased when we consider that, except
perhaps three or four visible planets, every glitter-
ing star in the sky is a mighty blazing sun, some
of them a thousand times greater than our own
sun — that their distances from us and from one
another are so stupendous as to baffle all human
understanding — that many of them are doubtless
the centers of revolving worlds, so far away that
the telescope cannot reveal them.

Fixed Stars. — We speak of the stars as "fixed,"
because year after year they seem to occupy the
same place in the sky. It is true they rise and
set, as the sun and moon, and, owing to the revo-
lution of the earth around the sun, they gain four
minutes every day (and this amounts to twenty-
four hours in a year), but in one year from any
moment of observation the stars will again occupy
the same places precisely. More strictly speak-
ing, however, the stars are not fixed ; they are all
moving, some with incredible velocity, but so
great are their distances from us that their relative
positions seem unchanged for thousands of years.
Absolute rest is a thing unknown in nature.
Nothing seems more fixed to us than the solid
24

THE SIDEREAL HEAVENS 25

earth. Yet the earth turns on its axis at the rate
of a thousand miles an hour, speeds around the
sun at nineteen miles a second, and is traveling
with the sun through space at the rate of twelve
miles per second. So the stars are all, as far as
known, performing sublime revolutions through
celestial spaces.

Number. — The number of stars visible to the
naked eye is about 5000, not more than half of
which can be seen at any one time. To see the
entire 5000 on any one night one would have to
observe from the equator and watch from sunset
till sunrise. The number of stars visible through
the telescope reaches nearly a hundred million.
It is believed further that the dark bodies in the
heavens far outnumber the bright ones, but only
the latter are visible, even through the telescope.

Size. — The dimensions of some of the twink-
ling orbs that bespangle the night skies are vast
beyond conception. A lofty mountain peak seems
to us a gigantic object indeed ; but what a speck
it is compared with the earth, which weighs six
sextillions of tons. But it would take hundreds
of thousands of earths to equal the sun, and yet
some of the stars which have been measured are
thousands of times larger than the sun.

Celestial Distances. — The distance of a star
is measured by taking its angular measurement
and then repeating it six months later, when the
earth has traveled half way round the sun and is
180,000,000 miles from the first point of measure-
ment. Thus a triangle with the star at the apex
is formed. One side and two angles are known,

26 STAU I;A/KK * HAND-noou

and by a well-known rule of trigonometry the
other dimensions may be t'ouiul. Only approx-
imate results can he obtained.

Of all the astonishing revelations of the heavens,
celestial distances are the most astonishing. Tho
human niiiul is bailled and confounded at an
attempt to :';rasp the appalling space that separates
us from the nearest of the stars. Compress the
solar system, nearly six hillion miles in diameter,
into a space one foot in diameter; the sun would
be a tiny dot in the center, and the nearest iixed
star, on this scale, would bo five-sixths of a mile
away. How lonely and isolated is our system
in space 1 and perhaps all other systems are
equally so.

The nearest of the fixed stars is Alpha Cen-
tauri — not visible north of the latitude of Ten-
nessee -and this star is 'J7.\000 times as far from
lisas we are from tin4 sun, or twenty-five trillion*
of miles. Other stars have been measured that
are more than forty times as far away.

The Light Year. — The unit of celestial meas-
urement is the light year — the distance that li^ht
travels in a year. The velocity of light is 186,000
miles per second. It travels around the earth
eight times in a second, or four times while a
pedestrian is taking a step. Were the sun blotted
out of the sky wo would discover the fact eight
minutes later, as it requires eight minutes for
light to travel from the sun to the earth. Light
travels to the moon in loss than a second and a
half, and to Neptune in four and a half hours.
The nearest fixed star is four and a third light
years from the earth. Some have boon found to
be nearly two hundred light years from our

THE SIDEREAL HEAVENS 27

system, and it is believed that there are stars
whoso light has been speeding toward us for
thousands of years and has not yet reached us.

Arcturus is one of the finest first magnitude
stars in the summer sky. It is mentioned in the
Book of Job, and in many ancient writings. It
is one of the most distant stars yet measured-
one hundred and sixty light years — and it is trav-
eling toward us at the marvelous speed of two
hundred miles per second. But no one need fear,
for it would take 150,000 years to reach the point
where wo now are, and long ere then our system
will be far away. For an express train, running
sixty miles an hour, day and night, to cover the
distance between us and the moon would re-
quire five and a half months ; to reach the sun
would take nearly 180 years, while the distance to
Arcturus would require eighteen hundred million
years.

Nova Perse i. — Now and then a star is seen to
blaze forth for a few days or weeks and then fade
away into invisibility. This may be caused by its
contact with a planet or a comet. The most
notable recent occurrence of this sort took place in
February, 1901. A star called Nova Persei (the
new star in the constellation Perseus), hitherto a
faint star, blazed out into one of the first magni-
tude, but after a few days it faded away into a
ninth magnitude star. Astronomers have agreed
that the light and heat of this great sun must
have increased thus suddenly 10,000 fold. Two
deeply impressive thoughts here come to mind.
First, if this mighty sun was the center of a
system of worlds, and these worlds were the
homes of living beings, all must have perished

28 STAB GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

within a few hours. Second, this appalling con-
flagration actually took place a hundred years
ago, for the star is a hundred light years from the
earth.

Magnitude. — About twenty of the brightest
stars in the sky are known as first magnitude
stars, not that they are nearer, but brighter, and
probably larger than the average. Some sixty of
the next brightest are of the second magnitude,
and so on. Stars dimmer than the sixth magni-
tude are not visible to the naked eye, but the tele-
scope reveals them up to the eighteenth magni-
tude. The ancients gave fanciful names to many
of the brighter stars ; but modern astronomers
have adopted the Greek alphabet with the geni-
tive of the Latin name of a constellation. Thus
Vega, the brightest star in the constellation Lyra,
is called Alpha Lyrae, and Riegel, the second
brightest in Orion, is called Beta Orionis. We
shall, however, use the ancient names in the fol-
lowing study of the constellations in cases where
the stars have such names.

The following brief study of the constellations
will, it is believed, enable a careful student to
trace out the chief ones without further aid, but
a planisphere or star-map will be found a great
help.

CHAPTER IV

THE CIRCUM-POLAR CONSTELLATIONS

The stars around the north celestial pole never
set in our latitude ; they simply whirl around the
pole once in twenty-four hours. The north pole
of the sky is the point that would be reached by
the north pole of the earth were it extended on
into space. If we were on the equator, the north
celestial pole would lie On the northern horizon ;
if we are 40° north of the equator, it is 40° from
the horizon ; if we were at the north pole of the
earth, the celestial pole would be in the zenith.
The following observations assume that the ob-
server is about 40° north of the equator. There
is a second magnitude star so near the north
celestial pole that we call it the North Star, or Pole
Star, though it is one and a half degrees, or three
moon widths, from the pole. It should be the first
star learned by the observer.

Ursa Minor, the LITTLE BEAR, also known as
the LITTLE DIPPER. — This constellation attracted
much attention in ancient times because of the
Pole Star. The dimensions of this star are very
great and it is forty-seven light years from the
earth. It may be found in three ways. 1. It is
the end of the handle of the Little Dipper. 2. It
is almost in line with the "pointers" of the
Great Dipper. 3. It is half way between the
middle of the handle of the Great Dipper and
Cassiopeia. The handle of this Dipper is curved

29

30

and composed of very dim stars, but the two stars
at the end of the bowl are brighter. The name of
the one at the bottom is Kochab.

Ursa Major, the GREAT BEAR, known also as
the GREAT DIPPER. — This is a large constellation,
but only the seven stars composing the " dipper"
are conspicuous, and we confine our notice to
them. This figure is too well known to need
description. The names of these seven stars be-
ginning with the end of the handle are Alkaidy
Mizar, Alioth, Megrez, Phecda, Merak and Dubhe.
These are all second magnitude except Megrez,
which is third magnitude.

Dubhe is twenty-nine degrees from the Polar

Star ; the top of the dipper is ten degrees in

length and the bottom eight degrees ; the two

pointers are 5° apart. These distances should be

, carefully remembered for future use.

Mythology.* — Calisto was the daughter of
Lycaon, King of Arcadia, and was an attendant
of the goddess Diana. Jupiter fell in love with
the beautiful princess Calisto, and his wife Juno
became enraged with jealousy and changed the
princess into a bear.

Calisto, however, had borne to Jupiter a son
named Areas, who became a famous hunter. One
day while hunting in the Arcadian forest he came
upon a bear, and was about to slay it, not know-

* This feature, the mythology of the constellations, has
no relation to the modern study of astronomy, and it is
therefore omitted from nearly all recent books on the
subject. It is here inserted because it adds much interest
to the study of the stars, and is constantly referred to
in the Greek and Roman classics.

THE CIRCUM-POLAR CONSTELLATIONS 31

ing that it was his mother. Jupiter then inter-
fered and changed Areas into a bear also and
translated both to heaven. Calisto became Ursa
Major andArcas Ursa Minor. When Juno learned
of this she was greatly displeased, and she went
to Tethys, wife of Oceanus, the Ocean, and
begged her to promise never to receive these bears
beneath her waves. Tethys promised, and as a re-
sult these constellations never set, but whirl for-
ever round the pole.

Draco, the DRAGON. — The following descrip-
tion will answer only in summer. Half way be-
tween the two dippers is a row of faint stars, from
three to eight degrees apart, curving around the
bowl of the Little Dipper 8° to 10° from it, turn-
ing to the west and making a coil back toward
the south, ending with four stars in an irregular
square, forming the head of the dragon. The two
southernmost of these four stars are the eyes ; they
are brighter than any others in the dragon, and
are 16° a little west of north from the fine star
Vega. The one nearest Vega is Etanin, the one
further west is Alwaid.

Myth. — There are various legends of the
Dragon. One is that it was the one that guarded
the golden apples in the famous garden of Hes-
perides at the foot of Mt. Atlas in Africa. It was
slain by Hercules and Juno gave it a place in the
sky. Another is that this was the Dragon that
fought with Minerva in the battle of the giants,
and Minerva hurled it into the sky and twisted it
round the pole where it remained.

CHAPTER V

THE SUMMER CONSTELLATIONS

NOTE. — The following is adapted to 9 P. M. July the
first. The Heavens present the same appearance at 11
p. M. a month earlier, or at 7 P. M. (if it were dark) a
month later. The stars are nearly four minutes earlier
each day, amounting to two hours a month. This is due
to the earth's progress in its orbit.

Bootes. — (pro. Bo-o' tes) the BEAR DRIVER or
HUNTSMAN. — This constellation is marked by the
second brightest star in the sky, Arcturus, sur-
passed only by Sirius. Arcturus may be easily
found. It is now a little west of the zenith and
shines with a reddish lustre. A straight line
drawn through Alkaid and Mizar (the two stars
at the end of the Great Dipper handle) will fall
about 8° east of Arcturus. West of this star are
three dim ernes forming a triangle, and east of it
are three almost in line, while north of it, about
ten degrees, are three others almost in line, the
middle one being very dun. Still further toward
the pole are three stars forming a triangle. No
star hi the constellation except Arcturus, is
brighter than third magnitude.

Of the mythology of Bootes there are various
versions ; but it is generally agreed that he is a
huntsman chasing the two bears around the pole.
He holds two dogs by a leash, one of which, Cor
Coroli, about 12° southwest of Alkaid, is plainly
visible.
32

THE SUMMER CONSTELLATIONS 33

Virgo, the VIRGIN. — Southwestward from
Arcturus and about half way from that star to the
horizon there is a beautiful 1m (first magnitude)
star called Spica. Northwestward and northeast-
ward from it are scattered a number of small stars
— all belonging to the same Constellation Virgo.
This is one of the twelve constellations of the
zodiac. The student should carefully locate the
belt round the heavens called the zodiac and learn
the twelve constellations in it called the signs of
the zodiac. The sun, moon and all the planets
revolve within this belt and never leave it.

Myth. — Some say that this virgin was Isis, the
sister of the Egyptian god Osiris, who was basely
murdered by Typhon. Isis is following her brother
to the grave weeping bitterly. The Egyptians
attributed the yearly inundations of the Nile to
the profusion of her tears.

Libra, the BALANCE or SCALES. — This is an
inconspicuous constellation also belonging to the
zodiac. It is east and a little south of Virgo and
between that and Corvus, to be noticed later. The
virgin is holding the balance in her hand, and the
balance indicates that when the sun enters this
sign in September the days and nights are equal
all over the world.

Corvus, the CROW. — Southwest from Spica
near 20° and near the horizon are four stars forming
a quadrilateral, wider at the base than at the top .
This constellation is called Corvus. Apollo, sus-
pecting the fidelity of his sweetheart, sent a crow
to watch her. The bird performed its duty so
faithfully that it was given a place in the sky.

34

Coma Berenices, BERENICE'S HAIR, is a beau-
tiful cluster of small 5m and 6m stars, about a
dozen of which are visible to the naked eye on a
clear night. The cluster is on the meridian early
in May. It is due north from Corvus and about
20° west from Arcturus.

Myth. — Berenice was the wife of Evergetes,
King of Egypt, and noted for her wonderful
hair. The King on starting out on a dangerous
military expedition vowed that if successful he
would dedicate his wife's hair to the goddess of
beauty. He was successful, and the hair was re-
moved from the queen' s head, placed in the tem-
ple of Venus, from which it was soon after stolen.
The King was very angry, but his astronomer,
Conon, appeased him by saying that Jupiter had
taken the hair and placed it in the sky, and he
pointed out this constellation which has since been
known as Berenice's hair.

Corona Borealis, the NORTHERN CROWN. —
Southeast from the northern triangle in Bootes
there is a beautiful semicircle of stars, the brightest
of which is in the middle and is named Alphacca.
This star is about 12° east from Acturus, and a
little north.

Myth. — Ariadne the daughter of Minos, King
of Crete was deserted by her husband Theseus
and she was so disconsolate that Bacchus took
pity on her and gave her a beautiful diadem con-
taining seven stars. This at her death was placed
among the constellations.

Hercules. — The scattered stars between Co-
rona Borealis and Vega constitute the constella-

THE SUMMER CONSTELLATIONS 35

tion Hercules. None is very conspicuous. The
southernmost one, in the head of the hero, is called
Ras Algethi.

Myth. — Hercules was one of the most cele-
brated of the ancient demigods and was the son
of Jupiter and Alcmena. While yet a babe in his
cradle but eight months old, the jealous Juno sent
two serpents to destroy him, but he strangled
them. After he was grown he accomplished
many feats of strength. Jupiter bound him to
the service of King Eurystheus for twelve years,
after which he was to have a place among the
gods. This king imposed on him twelve tasks,
known as the Twelve Labors of Hercules, the
last of which was to bring to earth the three-
headed dog Cerebus, which guarded the entrance
to Hades. He died at length from wearing a
poisoned tunic, given him by his jealous wife, and
was translated to the skies. He is pictured with
his head toward the south, his foot on the head of
the Dragon, with the skin of the Nemaean lion
over his shoulder, and the head of Cerebus in his
hand.

Ophiuchus and Serpens, the SERPENT BEARER
AND THE SERPENT. — These two constellations are
usually given as one, and it is difficult to dis-
tinguish them as Ophiuchus holds the serpent in
his arms. It is a very large constellation, with
no very bright stars, situated just south of Her-
cules and Corona Borealis. The irregular line of
stars south of Alphacca in the Crown are the
serpent' s head. The head of Ophiuchus is north-
ward and is near that of Hercules. One fairly
bright star, Ras Alhague, marks the head and is
but 5° from Ras Algethi,

36 STAR GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

Myth. — Ophiuchus is said to be ^Esculapius,
the son of Apollo and the most celebrated physi-
cian of antiquity. He is known as the inventor
and god of medicine. So great was his skill, that
he often raised the dead, and Pluto complained to
Jupiter that the lower regions were becoming
depopulated. He accompanied the Argonauts on
the famous expedition for the golden fleece.
Many ancient symbols of this god represent him as
an aged man with a long flowing beard and bearing
a serpent. So we find him in the constellation.

Scorpio, the SCORPION. — Scorpio is one of the
most beautiful and conspicuous of the summer
constellations, and it is one of the twelve signs of
the zodiac. It lies near the horizon, south of
Ophiuchus and Serpens. It contains one fine
1m star, Antares, and several 2m stars. Antares
is of a reddish color and reminds one of the planet
Mars. Westward and a little north from it are
several 2m stars, forming an arc of a circle, and
with Antares they form the figure of a fan. South
and east from Antares there is a curved line of
stars, forming the tail of the scorpion. The con-
stellation can easily be found by anyone from the
above description.

Myth. — This is the scorpion that Juno sent to
sting to death the hero Orion, who had boasted
that there was no animal on earth that he could
not conquer. This closes the account of what we
may call the summer constellations, except the
stars lying low on the horizon south of Libra and
Virgo. These belong to Centaurus the Centaur, a
fabulous monster half man, half horse. This con-
stellation is a very fine one, but only a small por-
tion of it can be seen in the United States. It con-
tains the nearest of the fixed stars Alpha Centauri.

CHAPTER VI

AUTUMN CONSTELLATIONS

October 1, 9 p. M.

Lyra, the LYEE. — The Lyre is just east of
Hercules and passes the meridian at 9 P. M., about
the middle of August. It is noted for its one
beautiful silver 1m star, Vega, the reigning mon-
arch of the night sky, since the passing of Arc-
turus. Vega is twenty-seven light years, or one
hundred and fifty-eight trillions of miles from our
system. There are but five other stars easily
visible in Lyra. Three of them are just east of
Vega and form a triangle. The other two are
a little further south and also east of Vega, the
six forming a figure resembling a lyre. One of
these dim stars is a double one and another is
variable.

Myth. — This is the lyre of the great musician,
Orpheus, presented to him by Apollo. So en-
chanting was the music of Orpheus that the
rivers ceased to flow and the wild beasts and
mountains came to listen. The nymph, Eurydice,
was charmed by his music ; he fell in love with
her and they were married. But their happiness
was short-lived. A serpent bit her foot and she
died. Orpheus then resolved to enter the lower
regions to recover his bride. He took his harp
with him, and so ravishing was his music that
the wheel of Ixion stopped, the stone of Sisyphus
stood still, and Tantalus forgot his thirst. Pluto

37

38 STAR GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

and his wife Proserpine were so charmed that they
promised to restore Eurydice on the condition
that Orpheus would not look back while passing
out. He agreed, but as he was nearing the regions
of the upper air his desire to see his long-lost
bride, who was following and whom he had not
yet seen, overcame him. He looked back and
saw her, but she instantly vanished, and he never
saw her again. He wandered aimlessly about the
earth until his death, when his Lyre was placed
in the sky.

Aquilla, the EAGLE. — This constellation is
about 30° southeast of Vega and is noted for its
1m star, Altair. This is the brightest star in
the Milky Way, and is ninety-four trillions of
miles from the earth. It is between two 3m stars,
and the three are directly in line with Vega.

Myth. — This is said to be the eagle whose form
Jupiter assumed when he carried off Ganymede to
replace Hebe as cup-bearer to the gods.

Sagittarius, the ARCHER. — Directly south from
Vega and Altair and near the horizon we find the
beautiful zodiac constellation Sagittarius. It is
directly east from Scorpio. The main part of this
constellation is composed of seven bright stars, six
of which form two triangles both pointing down-
ward and slightly eastward. These triangles may
be imagined as suspended by a cord over the sev-
enth star of the group, a little above and half way
between them. A few other stars of this constel-
lation are found northeastward from this group.

Myth. — The stories of the Archer are very con-
flicting. We give the one accepted by the Greeks.

AUTUMN CONSTELLATIONS 39

The Archer is the famous Centaur Chiron, son of
Saturn. He was famous for his knowledge of
music, medicine, and shooting, and he taught
mankind the use of plants and herbs. He was
slain by Hercules, according to Ovid, and Jupiter
placed him among the stars.

Capricornus, the GOAT. — This constellation of
the zodiac is not at all conspicuous. It is east of
Sagittarius and somewhat higher. A straight line
drawn through Vega and Altair and continued 23°
beyond the latter will reach the head of the Goat.
By this means it may readily be found. The body
of the Goat is composed of the dim stars scattered
further toward the east.

Myth. — This was the god Pan, who, with other
deities, was feasting on the bank of the Nile when
the giant Typhon appeared among them. They
all fled and assumed different shapes. Pan be-
came a goat and plunged into the Nile. Jupiter
then translated the goat to the skies, and we have
the constellation Capricorn.

Delphin, the DOLPHIN. — A very attractive little
star cluster is the Dolphin, often called Job's Cof-
fin. It is northeast from Altair, some 13° and is
composed of five 3m stars,* four of which form the
figure of a diamond.

Myth. — Arion, a famous lyric poet and musi-
cian, was a native of Lesbos. He went to Italy
and amassed a fortune by his art. When return-
ing by water to his native island the sailors

* This constellation has eighteen stars, but, as in the
description of all the others, only those easily found are
mentioned.

40

resolved to murder him for his wealth. He begged
them to permit him first to play on his lute. As
he played the dolphins, attracted by his music,
swarmed about the ship. He then sprung into
the sea, and one of these creatures bore him safe
to shore on its back — and it was given a place
in the sky.

Cygnus, the SWAN.* — This is a very remark-
able and beautiful constellation, situated in the
Milky Way, directly east of Lyra and north of
Delphin. The brightest star, Deneb, is 30° di-
rectly north of Delphin. The Swan, with wide-
spread wings, is flying down through the Milky
Way, the head being almost midway between
Vega and Altair. The 3m star in the beak is
Albireo. Deneb is in the base of the tail which
points toward Cassiopeia.

Myth. — Various fables are given of the origin
of this constellation. The one mentioned by
Virgil and Ovid is that the constellation took its
name from a young man named Cygnus, a rela-
tive of Phaeton. Cygnus mourned deeply at the
untimely death of his relative (see Fluvius Eri-
danus), and the gods were so pleased that they
gave him a place in the sky.

Pegasus, the FLYING HORSE — This is also a
very conspicuous constellation, and is noted for
its fine square, known as the Great Square of
Pegasus. The four stars forming it are from 14°
to 16° apart, and the two furthest west are about
40° east of the Dolphin. The square crosses the
meridian about Nov. 1, at 9 P. M., and is easily

* Called also the Northern Cross..

AUTUMN CONSTELLATIONS 41

found. The names of the four stars are Markab,
farthest to the southwest ; Sheatj in the northwest ;
Alpherat, northeast, and Algenib, in the southeast.
All except Algenib are 2m. Alpherat, however,
though necessary to make up the square, belongs
not to Pegasus, but to Andromeda, to be noticed
later. Pegasus is a large constellation, and in-
cludes the stars between the square and the dol-
phin, one of which, Enif, is of the 2m.

Algenib and Alpherat are almost on the line of
the equinoctial colure, or prime meridian of the
heavens. From this line, which is in Astronomy
what the meridian of Greenwich is in Geography,
is measured the longitude of the sky, known aa
right ascension.

Myth. — Pegasus is the fabled horse that sprung
from the blood of Medusa after Perseus had cut
off her head (see next chapter). The horse was
presented by the gods to Prince Bellerophon, to
aid him in conquering the Chimera, a hideous
monster that vomited flames. After slaying the
monster, Bellerophon attempted to fly to heaven
on his winged horse, but Jupiter, displeased at his
presumption, sent an insect to sting the horse.
This so unsettled the rider that he fell back to
earth ; but the horse continued its flight and was
placed among the constellations.

Pisces Australias, the SOUTHERN FISH. — This
constellation is interesting only because it contains
Fomalhautj a fine 1m star. It is easily found.
Draw a line through Sheat and Markab and pro-
duce it about two-thirds of the way from the lat-
ter to the southern horizon, where it will fall just
east of Fomalhaut. This star ia in the mouth of

42 STAB GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

the fish, which receives the stream of water poured
from the urn of Aquarius.

Aquarius, the WATER BEARER. — Between
Pegasus and Fomalhaut are scattered many dim
stars, which the ancient imagination resolved into
a man holding an urn and pouring from it a
stream of water into the mouth of the Southern
Fish.

Myth. — This was the beautiful Phrygian youth,
Ganymede, son of the king of Troy. While at-
tending his father's flock on Mt. Ida, Jupiter
took him up to heaven to replace Hebe as cup-
bearer to the gods — hence he is pictured with an
urn.

CHAPTER VII

WINTER CONSTELLATIONS

January 1, 9 p. M.

Cepheus. — This constellation belongs by loca-
tion to the last chapter ; or, like Cassiopeia, it
may have properly been placed with the circum-
polar constellations. But I have reserved it for
this place because it belongs to a remarkable
group, a royal family, that I wish to notice
together.

Cepheus is not a bright constellation and not so
readily found by amateurs as many others. If a
straight line be drawn from the Pole Star half way
between Cygnus and Pegasus it will pass through
Cepheus, which is about half as far from the pole
as is Cygnus. There are three 3m stars, the one
furthest south being Alderamin. The mythology
will be given under Perseus.

Cassiopia, the QUEEN IN HER CHAIR. —
This is one of the most attractive of the constella-
tions. It is the same distance from the Pole Star
as the Great Dipper, and is directly opposite to it,
and, like Cepheus, it never sets. There are five
2m and 3m stars in the form of a wide W, and
supposed to resemble a chair. The star furthest
west is called Caph ; it is in line with Alpherat
and Algenib — on the prime meridian — and these
three form a straight line with Polaris. The name
of the star next to Caph is Schedar. It will be

43

44

noticed that Cepheus is enclosed by Cygnus, Ursa
Minor, and Cassiopeia, and is about the same dis-
tance from each.

Andromeda, the CHAINED LADY. — This con-
stellation is just south from Cassiopeia. It con-
sists of many stars, only a few of which are
conspicuous. As we have noticed, one star of
Andromeda, Alpherat,belongs to the Great Square
of Pegasus. The chief remaining stars of this
constellation may readily be found by drawing a
line diagonally across the square from Markab
through Alpherat. Continue the line east 7° from
Alpherat to a 3m star, and on the same line 7°
still further is Merach, a 2m star, which, with a
few dim ones above and below it, form the girdle
of the Princess. Continue the line 10° or more to
another 2m star, Almach, the last important star
in Andromeda.

Perseus. — If we continue the slightly curved
line on which we found all the principal stars of
Andromeda, some 12° east beyond Almach, we
reach Mirfak, the brightest star in Perseus.

Perseus is east of Andromeda and directly north
of the Pleiades. It contains many fine stars, one
other, Algol, being 2m. Algol is one of the most
wonderful stars in the sky. For about two and
one-half days it is a 2m star when its light slowly
fades for three and a half hours until it is a 4m
star, but after three and a half hours more it re-
gains its original brightness. This was noticed
by the ancient Arabs, as the name they gave it
shows. Algol means demon. For many ages the
cause of the variation was unknown. But it is
now known that Algol has a dark companion

WINTER CONSTELLATIONS 45

around which it revolves, and which hides part
of its light at each revolution. Algol may easily
be located. A line drawn to it from Mirfak and
another from Almack, forms a right triangle at
Algol, which opens directly toward Cassiopeia.
Algol has a small star very near it and nearly
south of it, by which it may also be known. The
other conspicuous stars of Perseus are scattered
on each side of Mirfak, forming an irregular line
toward Cassiopeia.

Myth. — The mythological stories of the four
above-named constellations are inseparable.
Cepheus was King of Ethiopia ; Cassiopeia was his
wife and Queen, and Andromeda was their daugh-
ter. Cassiopeia was a queen of matchless beauty,
and she boasted that she was more beautiful than
Juno and the sea nymphs, or Nerides. Juno
and the nymphs were highly insulted and they
complained to Neptune, and he sent a frightful
monster to ravage the coast of Ethiopia. Cepheus
and his Queen consulted the oracles and were in-
formed that nothing short of the sacrifice of their
daughter Andromeda to the jaws of the sea-
monster would appease the wrath that had been
awakened. Andromeda was therefore chained to
a rock to await her doom when Perseus with his
feet- wings came flying through the air.

Perseus, the son of Jupiter and Danae, was cast
as soon as born into the sea with his mother.
They were rescued by a fisherman and carried to
the king of one of the islands of the Cyclades
where Perseus grew to manhood. At a feast of
the King Perseus engaged to bring him the head of
Medusa, one of the three Gorgons, which had
power to turn to stone anything they looked upon.

46

Mercury lent him wings for his feet, and a dagger.
He found the gorgons sleeping, cut off the head of
Medusa, and fled with it bleeding through the air.
When he came upon the princess Andromeda,
chained to a rock, he fell in love with her and
proposed to her father that he would save her
from the monster, if she might marry him.
Cepheus promised and Perseus turned the eye of
the reeking head upon the monster and changed
it to stone. The nuptials were soon celebrated
and the royal family lived happily. All of the
four were translated to the sky after death. Per-
seus in the constellation still holds the head of
Medusa, and the eye with which he destroyed the
sea-monster is the blinking star, Algol.

Aries the RAM. — Aries is 19° almost directly
south of Almack in Andromeda ; but between the
two are three dim stars known as Triangula,
forming a long slim triangle.

Aries is the first sign in the zodiac. It will be
noticed that the zodiac is now mounting higher
toward the zenith, as the sun in summer is much
higher in the heavens than in winter. But it
should be remembered that the zodiacal constel-
lations viewed in winter are high as they are op-
posite the sun in the heavens, and those viewed
in summer are low.

There are but two bright stars in Aries, but 5°
apart. The one further east is Hamal and the
other Sheratan. Just south of Sheratan and very
near it is a dim star.

Myth. — This is the ram, according to fable,
that bore the golden fleece to recover which the
world-famous Argonautic Expedition was under-

WINTER CONSTELLATIONS 47

taken by Jason, and his companions. On this
ram Phryxus and his sister Helle were borne
through the air to escape their cruel step-mother
Ino. Helle became dizzy and fell into the strait,
which was ever after called the Hellespont.

Pisces, the FISHES. — This zodiac constellation
occupies a large space between Aries and Aqua-
rius, but contains no bright stars. But there is
one very attractive feature. Immediately south
of the Great Square of Pegasus there are seven
5m stars forming almost a perfect circle or poly-
gon. This can be seen only when the night is
clear and moonless.

There are two fishes in the constellation ; the
Northern Fish, south of Andromeda, and the
Western Fish, south of Pegasus.

Myth. — When the hundred-headed giant Ty-
phon put the gods to flight on the banks of the
Nile, they assumed different shapes for the time
to escape his fury. Venus and her son Cupid
became fishes — and two rfishes were accordingly
placed among the constellations.

Cetus, the WHALE. — As the whale is the
largest of living creatures, Cetus covers a greater
space than any other constellation. But it con-
tains few bright stars. It lies south of Aries and
Pisces. A 2m star called MenJcar is 37° directly
south of Algol. Menkar also forms an equilateral
triangle with the Pleiades and Hamal. Note
further that this star with four lesser ones forms a
small pentagon. This is in the nose of the whale.
The body extends westward and includes many
stars south of Pisces. One of these is very re-

48

markable and is known as Mir a Ceti, the wonder-
ful star of the Whale. For three months it is a
2m star, when it gradually fades away and cannot
be seen with the naked eye for eight months.
Then it comes back again and so continues in
periods of eleven months. Mira is directly south
of Hamal in Aries, and when on the meridian is
exactly between the horizon and the zenith.

Myth. — Most ancient writers consider this the
sea-monster that was sent to destroy Andromeda
and was slain by Perseus. It was placed among
the stars to commemorate the valor of Perseus.

Auriga, the CHARIOTEER. — This constellation
is east of Perseus and a little further from the pole.
It is noted for its one brilliant 1m star Capella,
24° east of Algol. The constellation is supposed
to represent the figure of a man with a goat in his
left hand and a bridle in his right. Capella is in
the goat near the left shoulder and a 2m star,
formerly called Menkalinan 7° east of it is in
the right shoulder. South of Capella 18° is a 2m
star named Nath and forms with it and Menka-
linan a long triangle.

Myth. — One version of this constellation is that
Auriga is Erichthonius, King of Athens. He was
the inventor of chariots and had great power in
managing horses. For these excellences he was
translated to the skies.

Taurus, the BULL. — This constellation is di-
rectly south of Perseus and Auriga and is remark-
able for two well-know star clusters — the Hyades
and the Pleiades.

WINTER CONSTELLATIONS 49

The Hyades is in the shape of the letter V and
the end star of one side is the 1m star Aldebaran.

The Pleiades or seven stars are a beautiful clus-
ter 11° northwest from Aldebaran. They cross the
meridian at precisely 9 p. M. on Jan. 1.

Myth. — Europa was the daughter of Angenor
and princess of Phoenicia. She was rarely beautiful
and Jupiter, becoming enamored of her, assumed
the form of a snow-white bull and approached her
as she was gathering flowers. She caressed the
beautiful animal and was encouraged to mount
his back. The bull then rushed to the sea,
plunged in, and carried Europa to Crete, and
from her Europe took its name. The bull was
afterward placed among the constellations.

The Pleiades were seven sisters, daughters of
Atlas and the nymph Pleione. One day, when
strolling through the forest, the huntsman Orion
came upon them and was so attracted by their
beauty that he pursued them. They fled ; Orion
was about to overtake them when Jupiter changed
them to doves and took them to heaven. The
fact that there are but six visible has two explana-
tions. One is that one of them, Merone, married
a mortal and her light was put out for the act.
Another is that one of them, Electra, was so grieved
at the fall of Troy that never could she bear again
to be seen by human eyes. In the midst of the
group there is one sister brighter than the rest.
Her name is Alcyone. The telescope reveals 200
stars in this cluster.

Orion, the HUNTEK. — This is the finest and
most brilliant constellation in the sky, and the
only one in the north containing two 1m stars.

50 STAR GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

There is a well-defined quadrilateral. The 1m
star farthest to the northeast is Betelgeux, and its
companion, 2m, some 7° west of it, is Bellatrix.
These are in the shoulders. The other two are
15° south of these. Rigel, a 1m star, is farthest
southwest. In the center are three remarkable
stars in line, very near together, forming the belt,
while suspended from it is the sword, composed
of a dim line of stars pointing downward. In
front of the hero, who faces the Bull in a menac-
ing attitude, and almost south of Aldebaran, is a
semi-circle of dim stars forming the lion-skin
shield.

Myth. — Orion, the son of Neptune, was the
greatest hunter in the world. He boasted that he
could conquer any animal, whereupon a scorpion
rose from the earth and stung him to death ; and
he still seems to fear that creature, for this con-
stellation sets at the rising of Scorpion. The con-
stellation Orion is mentioned in the books of Job
and Amos, and in the writings of Homer and
Virgil.

Fluvius Eridanus, the RIVER Po. — The
few stars immediately south of Orion belong to
Lepus, the Hare ; and those south of Lepus lying
along the horizon belong to Colomba, Noah's
Dove. The River Po is composed of the scattered
stars lying south of Taurus and Cetus, but is
scarcely desirable to trace it out.

Myth. — The Po River was made memorable in
many ways, and especially through its connection
with the fable of Phaeton. This youth was the
son of Phoebus, who had control of the sun in

WINTER CONSTELLATIONS 51

his daily revolutions. Phaeton begged his father
to permit him to guide the sun's chariot for one
day. The request was granted, but no sooner had
the youth taken the reins than the sun departed
from his track, and the heat became so great as to
threaten a vast conflagration of heaven and earth.
Jupiter, seeing the disorder, struck Phaeton dead
with a thunderbolt, and he fell from heaven into
the Po. The great heat produced on this occa-
sion is said to have dried up the blood of the
Ethiopians and turned their skins black. The
fable probably arose from some extraordinary
term of heat in remote antiquity, and this tradi-
tion of it alone has reached us.

CHAPTER VIII

SPRING CONSTELLATIONS

April 1, 9 p. M.

Canis Major, the GREAT DOG.— This is south-
east from Orion about 30°, and is famous for its
great star, Siriusy by far the brightest in the
heavens. Sirius is probably two hundred times
as large as our sun and is fifty trillions of miles
from us — so far that at cannon-ball speed the dis-
tance could be covered only in five million years.
A line drawn from Sirius through the belt of
Orion and produced to the Pleiades, is almost a
straight line, and falls just west of Aldebaran.
The ancients believed that Sirius caused the ex-
cessive heat of summer, and the days of his reign
were called Dog Days. At this season the star is
not visible because it is overhead in daytime. The
Egyptians noticed that the overflow of the Nile
was always presaged by the rising of Sirius, which,
like a faithful watch-dog, warned them of the in-
undation. The stars lying near this one belong
also to this constellation.

Canis Minor, the LITTLE DOG. — Northeast
from Sirius 26°, and forming with it and Betelgeux
a perfect equilateral triangle, is another 1m star
called Procyon. It is the chief star in the Little
Dog, and is diagonally across the Milky Way
from the Greater Dog.
52

SPRING CONSTELLATIONS 53

Myth. — Canis Major and Canis Minor are sup-
posed to be the two hounds of the mighty hunter
Orion. The dim stars lying between the two dogs
belong to Monoceros, the Unicorn.

Gemini, the TWINS. — About 20° north of Pro-
cyon are two bright stars near together. They are
the famous twins of ancient mythology, Castor
and Pollux. Pollux is the further south and is
rated a 1m star, while Castor is 2m ; though it is
difficult to distinguish between them, and Castor
was formerly the brighter. These two stars are
in the heads of the twins, who are in a sitting pos-
ture— and their feet are toward Orion. The
various stars scattered in that direction form the
bodies and feet.

This is the highest constellation in the zodiac.
The sun enters it on the 21st of June, when it is
of course invisible. Six months later it is on the
meridian at midnight.

Myth. — Castor and Pollux were the twin sons
of Jupiter and Leda, Queen of Sparta. They ac-
companied the Argonauts in quest of the golden
fleece, and won the admiration of all by their
prowess. Castor excelled as a trainer of horses,
and his brother for his bravery with arms. The
Roman armies often persuaded themselves to be-
lieve that in the midst of battle these two gods
often appeared to give them victory. The twins
were also the protectors of navigation. St. Paul
sailed in a ship whose sign was Castor and Pollux
(Acts 28: 11). The ancients often swore by the
twins, and the expression ' ' By Gemini " is some-
times heard to this day.

Argo Navis, the SHIP ARGO. — Southeast

54 STAR GAZER'S HAND-BOOK

from Canis Major are several stars of this constel-
lation scattered along the horizon, but the finest
ones in it are not visible in the United States.
South of Sirius 36° is Canopus, a fine star of
the 1m.

Myth. — This is the famous ship in which Jason
and his fifty- four companions, called Argonauts,
from the name of the ship, sailed to Colchis in
quest of the golden fleece. Some suppose, how-
ever, that the famous expedition never occurred,
and that the story was founded on traditions of
Noah and the flood.

Hydra and Crater, the WATER SERPENT and
the CUP. — Between Argo Navis on the west and
Corvus on the east is an irregular line of stars
higher above the horizon than Argo. This is the
Water Serpent. Its head, composed of four stars,
forming a rhomboid, exactly as far from the hori-
zon as Procyon and about 20° east of it. The cup
is much further east, the same height as Corvus
and about 22° west of it. It contains six stars,
forming a crescent opening to the west. The body
of the serpent lies beneath the cup and extends
on eastward.

Myth. — This Hydra was the hundred-headed
monster that infested the region of Lake Lerna.
It was destroyed by Hercules, as one of his twelve
labors, and Juno, ever jealous of the fame of that
hero, gave the serpent a place among the stars.

Cancer, the CRAB. — This is a very inconspicu-
ous constellation of the zodiac just east of Gemini,
and west of Leo. Neither as a constellation nor
in its mythology does it present anything very in-
teresting.

SPRING CONSTELLATIONS 55

Leo, the LION. — This large and attractive con-
stellation of the zodiac lies between Cancer and
Virgo. It contains one 1m star, Regulus, which
with five others further north arranged in a semi-
eircle, form the Sickle, the most conspicuous ob-
ject in the constellation. There are two or three
bright stars northeastward from Regulus, and one
2m star 25° east of it named Denebola. Denebola
forms an almost equilateral triangle with Spica
and Arcturus. This brings us entirely round the
heavens, whence we began with the summer con-
stellations.

Myth. — This is the Nemean Lion slain by
Hercules. So says the Greek fable, but the
Egyptian charts placed a lion in this part of the
sky long before the birth of the fabled Hercules.
No modern imagination, however, can trace the
form of a lion in the constellation.

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